White people often believe that multicultural / anti-racist education is
only necessary for those who interact with “minorities” or in “diverse”
environments. However, the dynamics discussed here suggest that it is
critical that all white people build the stamina to sustain conscious
and explicit engagement with race. When whites posit race as
non-operative because there are few, if any, people of color in their
immediate environments, Whiteness is reinscribed ever more
deeply45.
When whites only notice “raced others,” we reinscribe Whiteness by
continuing to posit Whiteness as universal and non Whiteness as other.
Further, if we can’t listen to or comprehend the perspectives of people
of color, we cannot bridge cross-racial divides. A continual retreat
from the discomfort of authentic racial engagement results in a
perpetual cycle that works to hold racism in place.

While anti-racist efforts ultimately seek to transform institutionalized
racism, anti-racist education may be most effective by starting at the
micro level. The goal is to generate the development of perspectives and
skills that enable all people, regardless of racial location, to be
active initiators of change. Since all individuals who live within a
racist system are enmeshed in its relations, this means that all are
responsible for either perpetuating or transforming that system.
However, although all individuals play a role in keeping the system
active, the responsibility for change is not equally shared. White
racism is ultimately a white problem and the burden for interrupting it
belongs to white people46. Conversations about Whiteness might best
happen within the context of a larger conversation about racism. It is
useful to start at the micro level of analysis, and move to the macro,
from the individual out to the interpersonal, societal and
institutional. Starting with the individual and moving outward to the
ultimate framework for racism – Whiteness – allows for the pacing that
is necessary for many white people for approaching the challenging study
of race. In this way, a discourse on Whiteness becomes part of a process
rather than an event47.

Many white people have never been given direct or complex information
about racism before, and often cannot explicitly see, feel, or
understand it48. People of color are generally much more aware of racism
on a personal level, but due to the wider society’s silence and denial
of it, often do not have a macro-level framework from which to analyze
their experiences49. Further, dominant society “assigns” different roles
to different groups of color50, and a critical consciousness about
racism varies not only between individuals within groups, but also
between groups. For example, many African Americans relate having been
“prepared” by parents to live in a racist society, while many Asian
heritage people say that racism was never directly discussed in their
homes51. A macro-level analysis may offer a framework to understand
different interpretations and performances across and between racial
groups. In this way, all parties benefit and efforts are not solely
focused on whites (which works to re-center Whiteness).

Talking directly about white power and privilege, in addition to
providing much needed information and shared definitions, is also in
itself a powerful interruption of common (and oppressive) discursive
patterns around race. At the same time, white people often need to
reflect upon racial information and be allowed to make connections
between the information and their own lives. Educators can encourage and
support white participants in making their engagement a point of
analysis. White Fragility doesn’t always manifest in overt ways; silence
and withdrawal are also functions of fragility. Who speaks, who doesn’t
speak, when, for how long, and with what emotional valence are all keys
to understanding the relational patterns that hold oppression in
place52. Viewing white anger, defensiveness, silence, and withdrawal in
response to issues of race through the framework of White Fragility may
help frame the problem as an issue of stamina-building, and thereby
guide our interventions accordingly.